Faithful
by Zodiac32
Summary: Roy will never be over Maes, but is Maes really over Roy? MaesxRoy, JeanxRoy
1. Move On

Disclaimer: I don't own FMA or the characters. God, I wish I did though. Maes and Roy would be together, they're canon you know? rambles on about her FMA/yaoi beliefs

Anyhoo...Merry Christmas, Kei!

FAITHFUL

Chapter One: Move On

Roy Mustang took a deep breath and tried to gather his thoughts. 'Just tell him how you feel, Mustang. It'll be fine. He's never denied you before...' The Flame Alchemist thought to himself as the faint sound of ringing resounded in his ears.

Calling his best friend was never this daunting of a task. In fact, it usually happened more often and was rather quite nice for both parties; because a casual phone call always lead to more interesting situations. That is until his best friend got married. Leaving Roy in a rather awkward position, because he and Maes were, after all, longtime lovers.

"Yo!" A familiar, cheery voice answered the phone right away. It was painfully obvious that it belonged to Maes Hughes, for no other person Roy knew answered a phone like his best friend. The Alchemist sighed in relief. He didn't know if he could handle it had Gracia answered one of his spontaneously random late night phone calls. At least, not tonight.

"Hello Maes..."

"Roy!" Hughes whispered excitedly into the phone. "My God Roy! It's been forever, where the hell have you been? I've been worried sick about you! Please, Roy, talk to me!"

Mustang smirked, it was such a comfort to know his friend had been thinking of him. But apart of him was busy feeling the guilt of knowing he caused that worry by irrationally avoiding his once lover. Roy couldn't take the pain of not being the one in the man's arms at night. Couldn't stand thinking about the way Hughes' soft lips would no longer be on his neck, but the slender neck of his wife instead. Hearing the older man's voice only brought back pained, though not entirely forgotten, memories of when they were together.

Roy on his back, moaning in pleasure from the sensual licks and nips to his inner thigh, while a gentle hand roamed over his slick, sweat-covered abdomen. A hot, wet tongue licking and tasting the tip of Roy's hardness before it was enveloped by that talented mouth. Oh, the things that mouth could do.

The almost feral look in Maes' eyes as he rocked into Roy's body; gripping Mustang's sleek hips and dragging him back onto himself, in a rhythm that wasn't too slow, nor too fast. Everything Hughes did was perfect. Even the small pants and sighs Maes made as he came, screaming Roy's name through clenched teeth; perfect.

When all was said and done, bodies tangled in a web of limbs and blankets, Maes would kiss him. A mesh of lips and tongue, always passionate and needy, never forceful. Their mouths just seemed to be made to fit together, like the pieces to a puzzle that could never stay whole.

The Lt. Colonel shifted his stance and thrust a pale hand into his pants pocket, unconsciously fidgeting with a scrap of paper, as he often did when he was nervous. He finally shook himself from the familiar daydream. The memories, though fond they were, haunted Mustang. Some nights he could barely sleep, tossing and turning in his bed, unable to get comfortable because of the complete lack of another warm body lying next to him. Mustang had gotten so used to having someone sleeping by his side during the night, someone he could hold onto, and would watch over him in return.

Mustang spoke slowly, but it was obvious his words were not given time to filter through his head before they fell from his mouth.

"Maes, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to worry you like that. It's just...I miss you so much, Maes! I don't know what to do with myself anymore. Waking up, alone. It's really hard, you know? "

'No, of course you wouldn't, you've got her.' Roy thought miserably. His heart was in his stomach, doing flip flops and somersaults, and he was practically pacing his kitchen floor waiting for a response from the citrine eyed man. Mustang pinched the bridge of his nose in a futile attempt to fend of the inevitable stress headache he felt coming on.

"Oh, Roy. I miss you too. So damn much," the bespectacled man spoke softly and cupped a hand over the speaker of the telephone to prevent his voice from carrying an further than need be. It was obvious there was a pained undertone in his words, and Mustang couldn't help but hear the desperation in his companion's voice.

Roy's heart jumped back into his chest and beat twice as fast, as if to make up for the lost time it was in his stomach.

"Come over, please. Just for tonight, that's all! I'll never ask it of you again. I just...I need you tonight, Maes." When the words that could be formed were said, Mustang held his breath. He was so close, he could feel it, and when Hughes said the word they would be together again. Maes never denied him, right?

Wrong. Dead wrong.

"No, Roy. I can't, not anymore. We both know that's a lie, if I give into you once, it will happen again. Please understand, I'm married now, and Gracia is right here! She's my wife, Roy. My wife! I love her, I really do! What we had, it's over now," A sigh. "I do miss you, buddy, more than anything, but we can't go back to the way things were. I'm so sorry. Please, Roy, don't do this to me, not now." Maes almost choked on the words creeping past his lips.

The man on the other end of the phone line was silent for a moment; not knowing how to react to the sudden burst of emotion that was swelling in his heart. Roy felt like he had been shot with an arrow, straight through said organ. His mouth went dry and his head throbbed with the aforementioned migraine, but still he could not simply take 'no' for an answer.

Mustang spoke quietly; a timid, hurt tone to his voice. "No, no Maes. Don't you do this to me! I love you. I love you more than words can say!" He was becoming almost panicky. "Maes, what do you want me to say, huh? What do you want me to do?! I'll do anything, just tell me what! Is it not enough to tell you I love you? That I truly, honestly love you?! What do I do, Maes?! Please tell me, because I'm really not sure I can figure it out on my own anymore!"

And Roy Mustang sobbed. He sobbed to the man he so desperately needed in his arms at that very minute. The man that used to hold him, gently kiss his forehead, and promise to make everything right. The man that could take all the pain away with just a mere touch of his gentle, loving hands. The very same man that sat in Roy's living room, and told him that he would stand beneath the younger and push him to the top.

But this could not be made right, the pain would not go away, and Roy was falling lower than any rank a dog of the military could achieve.

Hughes was amazed, and a little heartbroken, at the control he had over himself to not just break down and cry. He tilted his head back and closed his citrine eyes. A burning sensation rose from his stomach, up to his chest, and into his throat where he tried his best to swallow it back down again. His heart was sinking into an abyss of pain and self-hatred, and he placed a big hand over it to make sure it was still beating.

"Roy, I love you too, you already know that. But you need to move on, you need to let me go!"

Maes thought for a second, staring into the bedroom where his Gracia laid on their queen sized bed. She was positioned on her side, wearing a silky, turquoise-blue nightgown with the maroon comforter tucked snugly underneath her arm. Noticing Maes looking in her direction, she smiled a genuinely heartwarming smile and patted the empty space next to her.

He continued, "It's not fair to Gracia, it's not fair to me, and most of all, it's not fair to you! Babe, you can't do this to yourself. I won't let you do this to yourself."

Mustang flinched as the word 'babe' floated through the phone-line. He never liked the nickname to begin with, but now when Maes used it, it just plain hurt. His mind was reeling and he couldn't slow it down. The sickening pace within his head made the words fall from his dry mouth in a pattern of hurt sobs and broken sounds. Roy needed to get his point across to Maes.

"I-I can't get over you, Maes! Don't you realize that?"

Maes sighed, he was tired, his head hurt, and he just wanted for this conversation to never have happened. "I'm so sorry, Roy. Fate just isn't on our side, buddy..."

"Fuck fate!" Roy screamed into the phone, voice hoarse and gripping the receiver tighter than necessary.

"...good-bye, Roy. I'll call you later. Get some sleep, tomorrow will be better." And with that, the sound of a dial tone was all that was left of Roy Mustang's reality. Eyes too blurry too focus, head too sore, and heart too broken, Roy fell to the floor, allowing the phone to slip from his hand and dangle from the wall. He was too overcome with heartache and confusion to put it back on the cradle. His body trembled and shook as tears flowed from his dark blue eyes, and he lowered his head to rest in his hands.

'Maes, I'm sorry. I do understand, I really do. You're a married man now, you have a wife that loves you more than anything. Nothing can take that away from you.' Roy thought.

The Lt. Colonel balled a fist and thumped it against the hardwood floor. 'But you were mine first! We had everything together, we were in love. It's so hard to give you up Maes, I don't know what I'm going to do without you here to hold me.' Roy felt miserable, his heart was torn apart, his tear-stained clothes were a wreck, and his hair was so out of place he would hardly recognize himself walking down the street.

More tears flowed from obsidian eyes, and Mustang didn't try to hold them back. He sobbed until there was nothing left.

Maes stood next to the small table with the phone rested on it; fingers massaging his temples. He was exhausted from all of the fiery mental hoops his feelings were just forced to jump through. A sweet voice came from behind him and he almost jumped when a tender hand was placed on one of his strong, broad shoulders.

"Honey, is everything alright?" Gracia asked softly. She had never actually seen her usually upbeat husband in such a depressing state, something must really be wrong.

Maes turned to look into his adoring wife's baby blue eyes. "Yes, everything is fine, darling." A lie. "Roy's just a little depressed right now and needed to talk." Well, not a complete lie, but still. Hughes felt guilty about lying to his unsuspecting wife; but he couldn't tell her the honest-to-God truth of the matter. It would most certainly destroy their relationship. The relationship that Maes worked so hard to acquire, and yet seemed to ruin his once most prized bond. But no, Gracia came first. Roy would just have to learn to accept that.

'This way,' Maes thought. 'Things will be better for us all in the long run.'

Maes looked into his wife's eyes, then leaned in and kissed her deeply. Gracia threw her arms around his neck and Hughes carried his wife back to their bed, only turning slightly to shut the bedroom door.

'God, please...please, let Roy be okay.'


	2. A New Lover, But Still Not You

Chapter 2: A New Lover (But Still Not You)

Roy practically purred to the man that was laying in bed next to him, as he reached up to run his fingers through soft, blonde hair.

"Mmm..." the Second Lieutenant hummed sleepily. He was propped on his elbow, looking down into his lover's obsidian eyes; a cigarette between his lips. Havoc laid a slender hand on Roy's side, gently stroking the sensitive flesh of his hip with soft fingertips. The affectionate caress sent a small shiver through Mustang's body as he reached up to snatch the cigarette and steal a kiss from Jean's pouting lips.

He traced his tongue over the blonde's lips and Jean parted them, granting entrance. Tongues, and teeth, clashed in a tender, loving manner that any female would find herself rivaling; especially when it was with Roy Mustang. The dark haired man bit at the other's bottom lip playfully, licking and suckling at it while Jean hummed with joy at the attention.

When Roy broke the kiss he brought his hand up to settle on Jean's cheek, and propped himself on an elbow to look into his lover's striking blue eyes. The blonde's skin was so much softer than any man's had a right to be; and Mustang rubbed at Havoc's chin with his thumb to appreciate it's fresh shaven smoothness. Nothing like Maes'.

A second later the phone rang and the couple groaned in protest, not wanting to move from the comfort of each others arms. Finally, after a second, Mustang sighed and gave into the phone's incessant noise.

"Jean..." Roy placed a soft kiss on Jean's forehead. "...I've got to go..." a peck on the bridge of his nose. "...and get the phone..." on the tip of his nose. "...but it will only take a minute." a sweep of tongue to his lover's lips. "So stay here and try to get some rest, hmm?" A charming smile to top everything off.

Havoc arched a thin eyebrow and smiled slyly. "Gee, boss, when you put it like that." He winked and gave his commanding officer a quick peck on the cheek before rolling over and pulling the blanket up to his chin. Jean let out a final yawn and within seconds drifted of into a light slumber. Roy smiled and pet at his subordinate's hair before removing the dark purple comforter from his body and swinging his legs over to step onto the hardwood floor.

The dark haired man pulled on a pair of red, silk pajama pants before he walked into the kitchen of his apartment. Roy shielded his eyes and flipped on the switch, expecting the nearly blinding stream of light that cascaded into the room, enhancing the stark-white walls on all four sides of the kitchen.

He walked the few paces over to the wall with the phone mounted on it and picked up the handle already knowing who was on the other end. Nobody but Hughes would be so persistent as to listen to a ringing telephone for more than five minutes.

"Hello?"

"Hey, Roy, we need to talk." Maes' voice was disturbed. He sounded uneasy and a hint of something else Mustang couldn't distinguish.

Roy scratched at his belly and yawned. "Um, alright, Maes. What's the problem?"

"Oh, no problem Roy, I just wanted to talk to you. Say, is Jean there? I remember you mentioned you two had a date or something tonight. Is that right?" Hughes said.

"Yeah, yeah, he's in my bedroom sleeping right now actually." Mustang felt a pang of guilt and embarrassment spike in his heart. "Why do you ask?"

"No reason really. I mean, he's not going to be upset that you're talking to me is he?" Maes snuffed coldly.

The younger man's eyes widened. Was Maes actually jealous of Jean? No, surely not. After all, wasn't Hughes the one that reprimanded Mustang for his jealousy issues? Roy cleared his throat in an attempt to swallow any indication of surprise that may have crept in.

"Of course not, Maes." he said. "Would Gracia get mad knowing that you're talking to me?" Roy felt he needed to throw that in. Well, because he didn't know if Gracia would get upset that Maes and he were talking, especially so late at night, when Hughes should be spending time with his wife. But, no, Roy knew Gracia better than he liked to admit, and he really did like the woman Maes had chosen as his bride.

"No, of course she wouldn't. Gracia understand that you're my best friend, Roy. There's certain things I can talk to only you about."

Roy made a humming sound in his throat. "I thought so. Don't worry about Jean, Maes. He gets---"

"I really miss you, Roy." Hughes interjected. It was obvious he was trying not to be too loud for fear of his wife overhearing. "And…I love you, and I need to see you. Tonight. Right now." The words floating through the phone line was heaven to Mustang's ears; it was all he dreamed of hearing from Maes since the man married.

Roy's heart leapt, his head spun, and he could barely form coherent words. What could he say to this man? The man that he truly loved more than anything in his entire existence. Maes was married to a beautiful, loyal, understanding woman; and now he wanted Roy back? It made no sense, it made perfect sense, it wasn't right, but it felt so damn good. Mustang thought a second, not entirely sure what he was going to say, but he knew he had to say something. 'Do the right thing, Mustang!" his heart screamed.

"No…Maes. I-I won't do it." Roy choked out, feeling the tears welling in his eyes. "I can't. It…it's not right. It's not fair. I love you so much, I really do. But this…that can't happen again." The tables had turned, and Roy felt more depressed than he'd ever felt in his life.

"You…you have Gracia, and I have Jean now. We're doing pretty good for ourselves, aren't we Maes?" his heart hurt, and his head ached. Roy pressed his forehead to the cold wall and closed his eyes tightly, trying to stop the sting in them. But the tears rolled down his cheeks all the same. He couldn't' believe the words coming out of his own mouth, because Hughes was offering him his old life back…their old life back. Even thought Roy knew things could never be the same.

Maes thought about it before replying with a quiet, "Yeah, yeah we are, Roy." But he knew the actual reason Roy was rejecting him. "I'm sorry, for hurting you. I was such a fool, Mustang. Such a damn fool." his voice was cracking, but the tears never came. "I do love Gracia, more than my own life. But you…you were my first true love. You showed me something I thought I'd never have, Roy. You gave me all of you, and never asked for anything in return, and God, I loved every fucking minute of the time we spent together." Hughes let out a dry chuckle, which to Mustang sounded like more of a sob. But still, the tears never came.

"You'll never know how much I love you."

"That's where you're wrong, Maes. I do know how much you love me, I can feel it every time I'm near you, every time we talk, even about stupid shit. I can still feel it. And I will go on feeling it until the day I die" Roy smiled through his tears, knowing every single word he spoke was true. Maes' love for him was unconditional, it was no longer physically tangible, but it was real; and it was true.

"I just…I don't know what to do, Roy. I love you, and I love Gracia, and I'm only one man…"

"The best thing you can do right now, is to stay faithful to your wife, Maes. It's the only thing you can do." Roy's brain was screaming at him to give in, to run to Maes and make love to him like they never had before. But his heart overruled his mind this time.

"Then that's what I'll do." Maes said quietly, every ounce of his emotional strength put into five simple words.

"And when you need a friend, and nothing more, you know who to call."

"Yeah…I-I love you, Roy." Maes smiled weakly and pressed a kiss into the receiver of the phone.  
Roy closed his eyes, imagining the kiss was to his lips, soft and tender, just like they used to be.

"Mmm…me too, Maes."

"Good-bye…"

"Bye." and with that, Roy hung up the phone. He faintly heard the footsteps behind him, but when Havoc slipped his arms around Mustang's waist and held him close, Roy felt safe. He turned to bury his head in the crook of his lover's neck and sobbed. Jean tried his best to comfort the man, not really knowing why Roy was so upset in the first place.

"Shh…boss, it's okay." he stroked at Roy's dark hair and kissed the top of his head. "Hey, why don't you come back to bed and we'll talk about it?"

The Alchemist shook his head slowly and looked up into Jean's beautiful blue eyes. "N-no. J-just stay with me, right here. Okay?"

Jean kissed Roy's forehead and smiled gently, the situation finally sinking in. He figured out just who Mustang was talking to, and probably why his lover was sobbing into his neck. "Always." he said, finally. And he held Roy close, stroking the man's back with his fingertips, bending to kiss the crown of his head every now and then.

"You've got me, boss. I'm no going anywhere."

Roy reached up and kissed Jean with tear stained lips, knowing it was true. Maes would stay with Gracia, and Roy would stay with Jean; but in both men's hearts, they would always be faithful to each other.

THE END

As always, reviews are appreciated!


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